The Merrill Lynch Corporate Technology Group has signed a systems integration and application management services contract with IBM Business Consulting Services in an effort to generate operational efficiencies and cut costs.
The Corporate Technology Group manages IT resources for Merrill's corporate services, finance, human resources, marketing & communications, office of the general gounsel, research and treasury areas.
Under the terms of the agreement, IBM will work to integrate multiple financial operating systems, functions and initiatives into a real-time, on-demand model. IBM says its management of these functions will provide Merrill with greater control over maintenance spending, and improved ability to manage and implement internal end-user requests.
"Long term competitiveness depends on altering cost structures permanently," says Ginni Rometty, managing partner of IBM Business Consulting Services. "This type of far-reaching change is exactly what the Merrill Lynch Corporate Technology Group is embracing. The approach creates resiliency and responsiveness within the organization."
IBM is also providing a flexible staffing model that will enable the group to shift resources across applications as business needs change. The vendor says a key component of the engagement will be "the transition of existing and new processes with minimal business disruption".
Financial terms of the agreement have not been disclosed.